Big fake pot bust after feds investigate Seacoast

Two suspected dealers have been charged with selling an extremely potent form of synthetic marijuana as part of a major operation that allegedly included sales to undercover agents on the Seacoast.

Jason Schreiber

Two suspected dealers have been charged with selling an extremely potent form of synthetic marijuana as part of a major operation that allegedly included sales to undercover agents on the Seacoast.

Kyle Hurley, address unknown, and Robert Costello, of Lawrence, Mass., are facing federal charges of conspiracy to distribute and possession with intent to distribute controlled substances.

The two are being held without bail after their arrests on March 28 following a three-month investigation by agents from the federal Drug Enforcement Administration.

The probe took undercover agents to locations across the Seacoast, including Portsmouth, Hampton, Seabrook and Kittery, Maine. It was not immediately clear if there were any additional related arrests.

Agents were also led to a barn on Jacobs Well Road in Epping, where one of the accused dealers claimed batches of synthetic marijuana were mixed in cement mixers. Several boxes were removed from the home on the night of March 28, but agents at the scene wouldn't talk about their investigation.

Hurley and Costello were nabbed after allegedly making one last deal with agents at an undisclosed location in Portsmouth, where they sold more than 30 bags weighing a total of approximately 500 pounds, according to an affidavit by Mark Clifford, a York Police Department detective assigned to the Drug Enforcement Administration's Portsmouth Tactical Unit.

Costello allegedly delivered another 30 bags that day and was then arrested.

Hurley was also arrested after agents agreed to pay $500,000 for the synthetic marijuana, of which $250,000 was handed over just before the arrest.

The two allegedly admitted to the extreme potency of the product known in the past by the brand names "Spice" or "K2."

Special agents and task force officers in New Hampshire began investigating sales of synthetic marijuana at convenience stores in December.

Clifford described synthetic marijuana as a mixture of an organic "carrier" medium, such as an herb-like substance, which is then typically sprayed or mixed with a synthetic compound chemically similar to THC (tetrahydrocannabinol), the psychoactive ingredient in marijuana.

The DEA now lists certain substances as controlled substances, resulting in clandestine manufacturers and traffickers who now distribute smokable synthetic cannabinoid products with slightly varied synthetic cannabinoid compounds in an attempt to circumvent newly enacted federal and state laws, according to Clifford.

The products are often marketed as incense or "fake weed" and are often sold in head shops, tobacco shops, gas stations, convenience stores, adult stores and over the Internet.

The probe began with the purchase of synthetic marijuana from a store in Londonderry on Dec. 31.

Another undercover officer met with the owner of the Londonderry convenience store, which wasn't identified, on Jan. 10 and paid $600 for approximately 50 bags of synthetic marijuana under the names "Toxic Blue Magic" and "Bizarro," Clifford wrote in his affidavit.

Another 50 bags were allegedly sold from the same store Jan. 21, some under other names.

On Feb. 27, undercover agents met with that store owner, and during a recorded conversation, expressed interest in obtaining a large quantity to sell in Florida.

The owner told the agents that he got his products from a distributor who was later identified as Costello. The owner then called Costello.

"Costello advised that the products were illegal in Florida, but indicated that he was willing to ship the products to Florida. Costello advised that he shipped the products to multiple different states," Clifford wrote.

Agents later met with the store owner and discussed arranging a transaction with Costello, who claimed to sell 150 kilograms of synthetic marijuana a month.

At one point during conversations with undercover agents, Costello commented, "My stuff is stronger than anyone's out there," the affidavit said.

He allegedly told the agents that when selling the products to customers, they should tell them that they were "800 times" stronger than other marijuana on the market.

Costello allegedly told the agents that he had five baggers and one sealer and that he was currently operating out of Lawrence, Mass., but moved his operation frequently.

Agents then arranged to buy more at Costello's home at 19 Hoffman Ave. in Lawrence, the affidavit said.

At one point, the affidavit said, Costello showed the undercover agents his packaging operation located in a shed on his property. Agents reported seeing three individuals placing "leafy substances" into small packages.

"Inside the residence, the (agents) also observed thousands of empty packages similar to the ones they had purchased in the past," the affidavit said.

Costello allegedly told agents that he obtains his products from another individual and that he bags product for that person. Later in the conversation, Costello informed agents that he worked with an individual who had a barn in Epping, where that person mixes the synthetic marijuana in cement mixers and then "spreads multiple kilograms of the product on plastic sheets. The product is then sprayed with synthetics," the affidavit said.

Agents bought another 200 packages for $1,600.

Costello later allegedly agreed to ship about 300 packages to Florida.

On March 17, Costello met with several undercover agents at an unidentified restaurant in Hampton, where they paid $2,580 for 300 packages, the affidavit said.

Costello later told agents that he has "millions" of bags at his residence and sometimes has workers bagging synthetic marijuana 24 hours a day.

He said he worked with another person who operated multiple manufacturing locations in Manchester and Nashua, the affidavit said.

On March 18, agents met Costello and Hurley, who had allegedly claimed he could provide 15,000 grams of products, at a location in Kittery. Hurley allegedly told agents he sold a product that was "high end" and "perfect" and agents later made a deal to purchase $7,500 worth of synthetic marijuana.

After the meeting, surveillance officers saw Costello and Hurley travel in Costello's Jeep to a business location in Seabrook and later to a home in Seabrook, the affidavit said.

The Jeep was later seen traveling to the home on Jacobs Well Road in Epping, where two large shipping containers were allegedly seen on the property.

Later on March 18, Costello returned to Maine, where he sold the 15,000 grams for $7,500, the affidavit said.

Costello told agents that Hurley used more chemicals on his products than other manufacturers and that Hurley knows the laws and if a product were banned in July, "we would make a new one in June," the affidavit said.

Costello told agents that Hurley worked out of multiple locations, including Epping, Manchester and Nashua.

Police said Hurley's criminal record includes convictions for drug possession, falsifying physical evidence and resisting arrest.

U.S. Attorney John Farley, the prosecutor in this case, referred questions to a U.S. attorney's office spokesman, who did not immediately return calls.

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